Subaru of Indiana Automotive Inc. in Lafayette will be featured this week on the cable channel SCIENCE. Thursday’s episode of “How Do They Do It” will show viewers how a Subaru is built from beginning to end. Last month, a production crew, sent by Discovery Communications Inc. spent two days shooting video footage at SIA.

Have you ever wondered how a car goes from a coil of steel to a finished vehicle all under one roof? Subaru of Indiana Automotive, Inc. (SIA) will be featured in this week’s episode of “How Do They Do It” which airs Thursday, October 27 at 10:00 PM (EST) on SCIENCE. Viewers will get a glimpse at some of the processes and people that help SIA build approximately 250,000 vehicles every
year.

Last month, a production crew sent by Discovery Communications spent two days shooting video footage of the production process at SIA. The result is a comprehensive look at how a Subaru is built beginning
with coils of steel and ending with a new Legacy, Outback or Tribeca being driven off the line. Viewers will also see some of the rigorous testing procedures that every Subaru undergoes before being sent to
dealerships across the U.S. “How Do They Do It” is a documentary-style program that goes behind the scenes to discover how to do
the things, and make the things that form the modern world. The “How Do They Do It” episode featuring SIA can be viewed this Thursday at 10:00 PM (EST) on SCIENCE.

Subaru are on the verge of sealing a deal with China’s Chery Motors that should see them producing the Forester in Chery’s new factory in Dalian, but a new advertisement for Subaru’s Trezia model in Italy may well delay any official seal for the joint venture.

The Italian advertisement which reportedly translates as saying “a high driving position and superior internal space is worthy of a revolution” with a picture of China’s first chairman Mao in the background but with a feminine face superimposed on top. Subaru is not the first company to anger the Chinese internet with an advert that passed certain cultural boundaries, in 2008 Citroen upset the Chinese people in Spain with a picture of Mao Ze Dong with his face crunched up, of course this was prior to the Olympic torch relay issue in Paris which kicked off several months of hatred for all things French in China, of course the mob mentality eventually died away and Citroen enjoyed strong sales in the following years.

There is still a festering wound in China for Japanese actions in World War Two, so Subaru’s rather ill timed advertisement is only likely to affect any on-going negotiations for its joint venture in Dalian with Chery, until at least Subaru delivers a grovelling apology.

Subaru China were unable, or unwilling to comment on any actions taken by Subaru Italy and claimed to have no knowledge of the advertisement when prompted by Chinese media outlets. Expect an internet outcry over the next few days from patriotic Chinese and a boycott of Subaru’s products that will last at least a few days.

Looks like Subaru is giving the mid-sized sedan segment a good ribbing. The company has unleashed a new viral marketing campaign promoting the 2011 Mediocrity – a four-door that has “figured out a way to blend in more.” Funny, we think we’ve driven a few of those over the past year or two. The company has even gone so far as to rework an aging Kia Optima to stand in as the unfortunate Mediocrity. There are even spy shots, promo videos and complete interviews with designers to try to capture the heart and soul of the world’s most boring personal conveyance.

The whole stunt is aimed at setting the lovely Legacy apart from the rest of the four-door crowd. Is it successful? We’ll leave that for you to decide. We will say that the whole project is plenty funny and embodies the kind of lightheartedness we’ve come to enjoy from Subaru.